GARBER TRAVEL
Travel Policies
1) Purpose of Travel Policies
These policies and guidelines are applicable to the business-related travel of the non-faculty staff of Barnard College, its Board of Trustees members, and for all others traveling on behalf of or as a guest of Barnard College. In addition, for grant-related travel questions, please contact the Assistant or Associate Controller.
The Policy's purpose includes:
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Providing guidance to travelers, travel arrangers, approvers and auditors on cost-effective management of travel expenses
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Identifying reimbursable versus non-reimbursable expenses
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Clarifying employee responsibility for controlling and reporting travel related expenditures.
It is, of course, impossible to anticipate every situation that may be encountered while traveling on business. Thus the College expects each employee to exercise good judgment in incurring travel expenses, and to obtain prior management approval for any expenses or any expenditures not specifically covered under Policy regulations.
2) Travel Arrangements - Garber Travel
The College encourages the use of Garber Travel for all Barnard related travel. The use of Garber Travel is not a requirement for any Barnard related travel.
a. Benefits of Using Garber
Barnard College has selected Garber Travel to provide travel services to those who travel on behalf of the College. We encourage all Barnard College faculty and staff to use the services of Garber Travel to make all reservations for air travel, lodging, rail and rental cars. Barnard's policy to use just one travel agency enables that agency to compile Barnard's travel statistics and provide consistent service and significant cost savings to the College.
Garber provides a full range of travel agency services including, but not limited to:
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Scheduling air travel on commercial airlines and rail travel on Amtrak;
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Making reservations for hotels and rental cars within the guidelines established by the College;
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Providing the traveler with an itinerary package including confirmations and schedules.
b. How to Use Garber
In order to use Garber Travel, the following procedures must be followed:
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Identify the method of payment: Employee Personal Credit Card, Barnard Corporate Credit Card or Garber Air Card. The Garber Air Card is a Barnard-supported credit card that Garber Travel has the authority to charge for Air Travel Only.
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If the Garber Air Card is to used, a Garber Air Card Authorization Form must be completed before any travel can be arranged by Garber. These forms can be obtained from the Purchasing Department. The form must be signed by the Department Head.
If the charge is to be paid by the Provost Office, the form must be signed and coded by the Provost Office as well. After all approvals and coding is obtained, the Form must be submitted to the Purchasing Department who will then fax it to Garber.
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If the travel arrangements are being made for non-employees (i.e. interview candidate for a staff or faculty search), an e-mail must be sent from a department representative to Garber to notify Garber of the travel needs. The Garber Air Card can be used for potential candidates as long as the procedures in 2 above are followed.
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Contact Garber Travel to arrange travel. Garber maintains a database of current Barnard employees. As a result, they can verify whether an individual is a Barnard employee. Garber's contact information is as follows:
Listed below are contacts at Garber Travel, their phone numbers and e-mail addresses:
3) Air Travel
The following are procedures which should be followed when arranging Air Travel for Barnard business purposes:
• Class of Service : Barnard employees should make every effort to book the "lowest reasonable fare" when booking air travel. "Lowest reasonable fare" takes into consideration the fare, length of layover, and shortest possible route. If any travel is booked other than coach or economy, an explanation must be provided upon submitting receipts and written supervisor authorization must be obtained. Garber Travel is instructed to purchase the least expensive ticket available within the time restrictions.
• Non-refundable tickets : Non-refundable tickets provide significant cost savings and should be used whenever possible. When advised that a ticket is non-refundable, please be aware that a partial or full penalty will apply if travel changes occur after the ticket and boarding passes have been issued.
• Timing of Reservation : Every effort should be made to secure travel arrangements as far in advance as possible. At a minimum, tickets should be purchased at least seven days prior to the travel date. Making reservations two or more weeks in advance provides the best opportunity to secure the lowest possible cost.
• Airport Parking : Travelers must use the most economical parking facilities available within reason, which is normally the airport long-term lot.
• International Flights : For international flights, you must reconfirm all return flights at least 72 hours before departure. Failure to reconfirm may result in automatic cancellation of your reservation. When booking international travel, Garber will provide entry requirements and visa information.
• Grant Related Travel : If travel is supported by a U.S. government grant, only U.S. carriers can be used. For additional details, contact the Assistant or Associate Controller.
• Cancellations : If you need to make en-route changes, call Garber or other agency and cancel, in advance, any unnecessary reservations so as to avoid no-show charges. Return unused air tickets to the travel agency for credit. A ticket is money. NEVER DESTROY A TICKET.
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